This baby is cute in a smart way. Ripasso has many of the qualities of Amarone without the hefty price tag and this one has been recognised by Decanter as one of the wines of 2009. It fills that niche between your everyday drinking Valpolicella and the premium Amarone.

The most basic Valpolicella are light in body and often served slightly chilled, a little like Beaujolais with a touch of sour red fruit. The key native grape varieties are Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara, which are also found in both Ripasso and Amarone.

A big part of the reason Amarone is a high end product that tastes so good is down to the production process. The grapes are late harvested and then left in drying rooms for three to four months, where the sugars are concentrated and over a third of the water is lost as the grapes shrivel into raisins.

The secret to Ripasso is in the use of leftover grape skins and seeds from the fermentation of Amarone. They are added to the batch of Valpolicella wines for a period of extended maceration. So it’s easy to see why it is less expensive than, and similar to, Amarone.

From the above video you can tell Mike is a big fan of Farina’s Montecorna Valpolicella Ripasso. This vintage was one of Decanter’s top 50 Wines of the Year in 2009, earning Four Star recognition and stepping up into the ‘Highly Recommended’ category.

What they had to say: “Perfumed ripe cherry fruit, mint and rosemary. Elegant and juicy cherry fruit. Aromatic finish.”

There’s no better time to treat yourself with 20% off all Italian wines for the months of July & August.